Page 30 - Safe Wrestling

Saša Jovanovi´ c and Matej Plevnik

years, participation among children and adolescents has increased sub-
stantially, supported by school-based programmes, club systems, and
national sport development initiatives. Wrestling, in particular, main-
tains a strong presence within youth sport structures across Europe,
Asia, and North America, supported by clearly defined age categories
and structured competition pathways (United World Wrestling, 2023).
Epidemiological evidence suggests that participation in youth wres-
tling frequently begins at relatively early ages, often prior to puberty,
with progressively greater involvement in structured training and com-
petitive participation during adolescence (Snyder et al., 2024). Although
early engagement may facilitate motor skill acquisition and physical de-
velopment, it simultaneously increases exposure to cumulative training
loads and competitive stressors. This duality highlights the importance
of age-appropriate training models and systematic monitoring of athlete
development. Gender-related participation trends further demonstrate
a steady increase in female involvement across combat sports, including
wrestling. Nevertheless, several studies continue to identify disparities in
access to qualified coaching expertise, tailored training programmes, and
injury-prevention education for girls and young women (Crossley et al.,
2025; Khera et al., 2024). These findings reinforce the need for inclusive
developmental frameworks that adequately address sex-specific physio-
logical and psychosocial considerations.

Technical and Physiological Characteristics of Combat Sports
Across combat sports, athletic performance is underpinned by a com-
plex interaction of technical skill, physical capacity, and tactical decision-
making. However, the relative contribution of these components varies
considerably among disciplines. Striking sports are generally charac-
terised by intermittent explosive actions and rely heavily on anaerobic-
alactate energy systems, whereas grappling sports demonstrate a greater
dependence on anaerobic-glycolytic pathways due to prolonged isomet-
ric and dynamic muscular actions (James et al., 2016).
Wrestling demonstrates a particularly demanding physiological pro-
file. Competitive bouts consist of repeated high-intensity efforts inter-
spersed with brief recovery intervals, requiring athletes to sustain force
production under conditions of fatigue. Research indicates that wrestling
performance is strongly associated with maximal and relative strength,
trunk stability, grip strength, anaerobic power, and highly developed
technical execution (Horswill, 1992; Chaabene et al., 2017).

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